1) In Act 1, Scene 5 of Hamlet, the ghost of Hamlet's father appears to Hamlet and tells him that he was murdered by Claudius. 2) The ghost uses strong language and biblical allusions to express his anger at Claudius and persuade Hamlet to avenge his death. 3) Through the ghost's use of negative diction, vivid imagery of hell, and references to biblical stories of betrayal, Shakespeare illustrates the theme of revenge in the play and sets Hamlet on a path to avenge his father's death.

1. RaeAnne Smith
SL English Y2
Fitzgerald: Period 8
10 October 2011
Vengeance of the Ghost
"An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind." Mahatma Gandhi illustrates one of the
most apparent themes in Shakespeare's Hamlet, revenge, through this quote. In act 1, scene 5,
Hamlet is confronted by what appears to be the ghost of his dead father. The ghost, appearing
angry, explains to Hamlet his death − that he was murdered by his brother Claudius who is also
Hamlet's uncle, and the current king of Denmark −and that Hamlet must avenge him. In talking
to Hamlet, the ghost uses strong negative diction and vivid imagery as well as allusions to
express his anger and persuade Hamlet to avenge his death. Although Hamlet is skeptical, he
becomes infuriated and promises the ghost that he will get revenge for what Claudius has done to
his father. Through allusions to the Bible and biblical stories, strong diction and vivid tactile and
visual imagery in act 1, scene 5, Shakespeare illustrates the central theme of revenge in Hamlet.
The ghost alludes to the Bible several times in this scene, which helps to illustrate his
upset and vengeful tone. The ghost tells Hamlet of his murder saying that he was merely
"sleeping in [his] orchard" when "A serpent stung [him]" (1.5. 35-36). In this allusion to the
Bible, the "orchard" represents the Garden of Eden, which symbolizes peace and harmony, while
the "serpent" represents the snake that deceived Eve, which led to their being exiled from the
Garden of Eden and the first sin. The serpent symbolizes deception and betrayal, which
represents Claudius, for betrays and murders his own brother. The ghost continues to explain the
horror of his "foul and unnatural murder" that he encountered while he was sleeping. The ghost
was "by a brother's hand/ Of life, of crown, of queen at once dispatch'd" (1.5. 74-76). The ghost
again alludes to the Bible, specifically the story of Cain and Abel. The story in the Bible is of kin

2. slain, which, according to the Bible, the most severe of all the sins that can be committed.
Shakespeare's allusion to this story emphasizes the resentment of the ghost and the extent of the
severity of the murder that Claudius committed. Through the allusions to both the Bible stories
of Adam and Eve and Cain and Abel, Shakespeare portrays the anger the ghost feels and the
vengeful attitude he possesses.
The ghost's fury is also expressed through negative diction, which pushes Hamlet more
towards avenging his father's death. While the ghost describes the horrible crime that Claudius
committed in murdering him, he also expresses resentment towards the queen and his wife,
Gertrude. He uses words such as "incestuous," "beast," "shameful,” and "traitorous" to describe
Gertrude (1.5. 42, 43, 45). All of these words have very negative connotations, illustrating the
ghost's resentment towards Gertrude for marrying Claudius. He describes Gertrude as
"incestuous" because although they are not related by blood, Claudius is the ghost's brother,
making Gertrude and Claudius siblings in-law. By accusing the queen of incest, the ghost reveals
feelings of disgust which then creates similar feelings in Hamlet towards his mother. The ghost
also refers to Gertrude as a "beast." By doing so, he is not only demoting her to that of an animal
but further adds to the insult by specifying the animal as a beast because it has a negative
connotation. To describe his murder, the ghost uses the words "foul," "unnatural" and "strange"
(1.5. 25, 28). As the ghost describes the awfulness of the murder he suffered, negativity is placed
on Claudius as he was the one who committed the murder. The ghost employs these highly
negative words to describe his death further illustrating his anger and motive to desire revenge.
His anger creates empathy in Hamlet as well, which aids the ghost in convincing Hamlet to
avenge him. The diction of the passage helps to develop the tone, which illustrates the ghost's
thirst for revenge.

3. Finally, the visual and tactile imagery in this passage helps to convey the ghost's desire
for revenge. The ghost's first words to Hamlet are him telling Hamlet that he must soon leave to
the "sulph'rous and tormenting flames" (1.5. 2). The word "sulp'rous" is used to describe the heat
of the "flames” that the ghost is describing. The ghost then tells Hamlet that the crimes that he
has committed must be "burnt and purg'd away" (1.5.13). Those words also help to illustrate the
intense heat of the flames, which suggests that the ghost is in either hell or purgatory, giving
more reason for the ghost to desire revenge. This could also suggest that the ghost is a demon
because a good spirit would g to Heaven rather than hell or purgatory. If he is a demon, then he
is disguising himself as Hamlet's father and persuading Hamlet to commit sin which will
condemn him to hell. The ghost then describes "this eternal blazon" and "flesh and blood"
(1.5.21-22). The visual imagery of the eternal fire, flesh and blood illustrates the terrible situation
that the ghost is in, by creating a gruesome image of hell. This again suggests that the ghost is a
demon as he is describing hell. The visual and tactile imagery described by the ghost suggests
that the ghost is only appearing to be Hamlet's deceased father when he is really a servant of hell.
This would mean that the ghost is trying to create anger in Hamlet to convince him to avenge the
death of his father, preventing him from going to heaven when he dies. If the ghost is truly
Hamlet's father, his genuine feelings of anger are used to create empathy within Hamlet so that
he makes the decision to avenge him. The ghost effectively employs visual and tactile imagery of
hell and purgatory to create sympathy within Hamlet and sway Hamlet's decision towards
agreeing to avenge his death.
Shakespeare depicts the anger and vengeance that the ghost feels after his murder through
his use of allusion, diction and imagery. This passage illustrates one of the most central themes
to the play which is revenge. The passage sets the play into motion by creating the desire for

4. revenge in Hamlet, and his revenge then fuels the remainder of the Although Hamlet is unsure of
whether the ghost is truly his father or a demon, this is not of great importance to him and
Hamlet goes through with killing Claudius. Although Hamlet is able to get his revenge and
succeeds in killing Claudius, he also kills Polonius and paves the way for his own downfall.